Strong reactions have been caused in Belgrade by the resolution of the European Parliament, which calls for an independent investigation into the irregularities found in the December 17 elections.

In an EP resolution approved yesterday, Thursday, February 8, with 461 votes in favor, 53 against and 43 abstentions, it is stated that the elections in Serbia were “characterized by numerous procedural deficiencies” and it is proposed to set up an international ad hoc committee, which will review all complaints. The EP also calls for the suspension of EU funding for Serbia if Belgrade does not cooperate or “if the findings of the investigation show that the Serbian authorities were directly involved in electoral fraud”.

Prime Minister Ana Brnabic, in an interview on Serbian public television (RTS), compared the EP’s request to the ultimatum sent to Serbia in 1914 by Austria-Hungary demanding that it conduct the same investigation into Serbia’s involvement in the assassination of Crown Prince Ferdinand in Sarajevo . Belgrade’s negative response was the reason for Austria-Hungary to declare war on Serbia and start World War I, Ana Brnabic recalled.

“We lost half the male population then, because we defended our sovereignty. I have no intention of asking for the approval of this resolution (of the European Parliament). I would like to see someone come and ask me for something like that. If someone asks me, as Prime Minister, even with a technical mandate, to allow an international investigation in my country, believe me, I will resign at that moment,” Ana Brnabic told RTS. He pointed out that the resolution has no binding value and, as he typically said, “such resolutions come and go”.

Serbia’s prime minister has lashed out at the opposition, claiming that by asking the European Parliament for an international investigation into the election process, she is undermining the country’s sovereignty. Since yesterday, the pro-government media has branded the opposition leaders as “traitors”, while posters with photos of the opposition leaders and the phrase “The Quislings of Serbia” appeared on the streets of Belgrade.

On the part of the opposition, the EP resolution is characterized as extremely important “for the defense of democracy and the free will of the Serbian people”. The leader of the coalition “Serbia against violence” Marinika Tepic points out that “the resolution is not directed against Serbia and the Serbian people. On the contrary, it stands for the freedom of citizens in Serbia and the struggle for strong institutions that will not serve one party or one person.”